Sunday, December 23, 2007

In modern times, public school students often overlook the necessity of having a structured way of learning. These days’ kids don’t care how they look, nor do they evaluate the meaning of their daily attire. In Europe many public schools are turning to uniforms. The common perception is that uniforms will consist of prim and prom garments like nice slacks for boys and jumpers for girls. But actually what could happen is quite the opposite of that.

What’s important about having school uniforms? Is it really necessary to wear them? Questions like these often pop up, but rather than just ignoring them, we need to answer them. A simple dress would include khaki’s, jeans, along with a nice shirt. Why spend more money on “Cool” clothes, when you can go the simple, easy, and affordable way by paying for clothing? You might add that this is an avoidance of freedom of expression. But in all fairness, uniforms represent unity, discipline, and absolutely no distraction.

School uniforms guarantee that no clothing will display gang related symbolism and colors. There would be a decrease in all sorts of violence, including theft and bullying. Teachers can now concentrate more on their lesson plan, rather than being “clothes police”. There would be no more “that is too short” or “go to the office and change into something different”. Almost always these distractions prevent the true goal of schooling which includes having an educational and learning environment. By wearing uniforms, students can now sense a feeling of pride for their school. Ultimately more kids will want to go to school for this effortless fact.

Imagine wearing a nice woven v-neck shirt engraved with an outlined red warrior emblem. Imagine not worrying about what you are going to have to wear tomorrow. For everyone who wanted to attend a private school, but could not, visualize learning in an atmosphere so similar to that. Envision a hall of teenagers walking to their next class without any tease or jeer interrupting their procession.

To me the idea of wearing uniforms is something that is necessary. It will be a school wide change for the better, not for the worse. What can you do to help make this dream a near-future reality? Discuss this topic at the next school committee meeting. Once the idea starts floating around more and more people can start clinging to the idea. After stating all the positives and overcoming the potential of any negatives, school uniforms can be put into place in the near future. My ultimate goal is to not to bring small mention to the idea, rather to bring forth immediate discussion of a topic that can soon impact school children’s learning experiences across the public schools.